State of the Arts

State of the Arts: June 9, 2011 Archive

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Art Hounds: American Indian festival, Paper Toys, and pioneering painting

Posted at 7:00 AM on June 9, 2011 by Chris Roberts
Filed under: Art Hounds, Arts around the state, Events, Film, Galleries, Music, Painting

nakedvision.jpgStill from the documentary film "Naked Vision"

This week's hounds have their eyes on a Duluth screening of the documentary about painter Philip Pearlstein, an art show in which paper takes on an added, more playful dimension, and an encompassing American Indian art festival in Minneapolis.

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joehorsecapture.jpgMinneapolis Institute of Arts curator Joe Horse Capture has been waiting a long time for a festival that cuts as wide a swath through American Indian culture as the Twin Cities American Indian Arts Festival. It'll be held this Saturday and Sunday on the corner of 16th Avenue South and Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis.There will be music from six native bands, a hand drum contest, native food, and a fine arts plaza, which will feature more than 30 Native American visual artists.


kellykrantz2.jpgKelly Krantz is always on the lookout for shows at the Pink Hobo gallery in Minneapolis because she says they offer affordable art and never disappoint. Kelly, who makes zines and mini comics and blogs about theater for Metro Magazine, says Pink Hobo's "Paper Toy II" will feature cut, folded and manipulated paper sculpture, wall pieces and toys. It's a great opportunity to start an art collection, according to Kelly. The show opens on Saturday and runs through July 29.


peter spooner.JPGPeter Spooner, curator at the Tweed Museum of Art at the University of Minnesota Duluth, says the documentary "Naked Vision" is a compelling portrait of a 20th century master who's still going strong. Philip Pearlstein was an Andy Warhol contemporary who started as an abstract expressionist but moved into realism at a time when it wasn't cool. "Naked Vision," from Minnesota filmmaker and artist Jen Dietrich, will be screened at the Sound Unseen Festival in Duluth on Saturday, June 11, at Spirit of the North, at 2:30pm.


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Shakespeare through the eyes of young girls

Posted at 9:28 AM on June 9, 2011 by Marianne Combs (6 Comments)
Filed under: Theater

I call this marketing brilliance.

The folks at the Great River Shakespeare Festival had two precocious young girls - Eva and Anna - explain the plot of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (which, like most Shakespeare plays, is rather complex).

Then, actors performed the play as Eva and Anna explained it. The results are charming, and filled with giggles.

The point? If these girls can understand Shakespeare, so can you.

(6 Comments)

Modern high-tech protects ancient high-art

Posted at 2:02 PM on June 9, 2011 by Marianne Combs
Filed under: Museums, Technology

Museums work hard to provide the best environment for artwork so that it can both be seen, and be protected from the elements. Heat, light and humidity can all have disastrous effects on prints, paintings and even tapestries.

A new device created by the folks at IBM is giving museums a whole new level of sophistication when it comes to monitoring gallery conditions.

National Public Radio visited the Cloisters Museum - a branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York - where the sensor is being tested out.

The IBM sensors -- each housed with a radio and a microcontroller in a case about the size of a pack of cigarettes -- can measure temperature, humidity, air flow, light levels, contaminants and more. They are inexpensive and run on low power, and several can be positioned in a room, scientists said Wednesday.


The information collected goes into a three-dimensional "climate map" that can be accessed on a computer, and the data can then be analyzed to adjust the climate, spot trends and even make predictions.

The data collected will help museum staff determine how best to accomodate for such anomalies as sun shining through a window onto a specific part of the room, a group of people walking into a gallery after being out in the rain, or a packed opening event.

You can read more about the technoology here.


Sensors.jpg
An example of a small electronic sensor, like those that will be deployed at the Cloisters Museum, is placed on a table next to a quarter to illustrate its size in New York. The new system will monitor the environment in the museum to help preserve the works of art within its walls. (AP Photo/Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Mrs. Smith goes to Vegas

Posted at 12:16 PM on June 9, 2011 by Marianne Combs
Filed under: Television, Theater

Oh my, that Mrs. Smith finds herself in some of the most unusual places... and now she's going to Las Vegas!

Mrs. Smith (a.k.a. David Hanbury), a frequent performer of satirical drag shows at Bryant Lake Bowl, wowed the judges of America's Got Talent at a recent audition in Minneapolis. And as you can see from the above clip, they LOVED her, as well as a the St. Luke's Bottle Band and the "Halls of Magic."

Congrats to the winners!

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